Despite the warnings from previous failed experiments — and a damning Montgomery County Inspector General report — Maryland continues to throw millions at electric school buses that work better in press releases than on actual roads.
Last week, the Maryland Energy Administration announced over $12 million in new grants to seven local school districts for electric buses and their accompanying charging infrastructure. The money — taken directly from Marylanders’ energy bills — will subsidize a policy that is increasingly difficult to justify on technical, financial, or even environmental grounds.
This isn’t Maryland’s first foray into electric bus hype. Four years ago, Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) signed a contract to replace its entire bus fleet with electric models by 2035. The $168 million deal was touted as the largest local government electric bus commitment in the country.
In a July 2021 Duckpin column, “Has MoCo’s School System Committed $168 Million to Buy Edsel Electric Buses?,” I raised red flags about the procurement’s reliance on the tech firm Proterra — red flags that MCPS and county leadership ignored. I noted at the time that it rested on a precarious foundation: a reliance on technology from Proterra, a politically connected but technically troubled electric vehicle firm. The company had already made headlines for all the wrong reasons. In Philadelphia, Proterra buses celebrated at the 2016 Democratic National Convention were entirely pulled from service within a few years due to cracked chassis and inadequate battery life. Duluth, Minnesota experienced braking failures. California’s Foothill Transit had buses offline for up to 275 days due to parts shortages.
It’s not lost on observers that Proterra’s rise was built not on engineering success, but on deep political ties. Al Gore’s investment firm helped fund the company, and former Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm’s financial interests in Proterra prompted a Senate ethics inquiry. At a Proterra event in 2021, President Biden lavished praise on the company even as the company’s products were breaking down in cities across the country.
None of that seemed to trouble Montgomery County officials, who chose to partner with Highland Electric Fleets, a start-up integrator relying on Proterra’s platform. Their decision appeared to be driven more by climate politics than sound procurement practices.
Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich eagerly embraced the electric bus initiative, basking in climate virtue-signaling while leaving taxpayers and students with the consequences. It’s telling that when the buses failed, no official rushed to hold a press conference to explain why.
A year ago, the Montgomery County Office of the Inspector General released a scathing report validating those early concerns. The report found:
- Millions in wasteful spending: MCPS squandered taxpayer dollars through poor contract oversight.
- Unreliable buses: Mechanical and charging failures rendered many buses inoperable.
- Contract mismanagement: MCPS failed to enforce penalties against the vendor for late and faulty deliveries.
- Environmental setback: MCPS was forced to purchase $14 million in diesel buses to ensure service continuity.
This wasn’t just a bad bet — it was a failure of public accountability. Yet no official has accepted responsibility. Not the school board. Not the County Executive. And certainly not Highland Electric Fleets.
One would think that such an embarrassing debacle might prompt a pause — perhaps even a rethink — before expanding the program statewide. But the Moore administration appears determined to learn nothing.
Instead, more grants were announced this week for electric school buses, distributed to Baltimore, Frederick, and Howard counties. The funding continues to come from Maryland’s Strategic Energy Investment Fund — essentially utility ratepayer dollars redirected into politically favored “green” initiatives. Meanwhile, Marylanders are being crushed under record electric bills, exacerbated by the state’s forced transition to unreliable renewable sources.
There is no corresponding rate relief for the working families footing the bill. Just more symbolic gestures, headline-chasing, and misplaced spending priorities.
Maryland’s continued investment in electric school buses amounts to ideological stubbornness masquerading as climate policy. It fails the tests of accountability, fiscal responsibility, and technological readiness. Worse, it prioritizes optics over outcomes.
Rather than reevaluating after MCPS’s costly misadventure, the state is doubling down. Electric school buses may still be the darlings of the green industrial complex and its political patrons, but for Maryland taxpayers, they remain an expensive symbol of government mismanagement.
Where is the Comman Sense with Maryland and Montgomery County Politicians and Council members? They don’t respect the taxpayers. Continuing to fund a failed policy like electric school buses doesn’t make sense. Don’t make taxpayers guinea pigs.